Lavender
by Zexainia
Summary: There's a hollow in Hueco Mundo that's different from the rest. She doesn't feed off of human souls. She doesn't want to hurt other creatures. She longs for a purpose. She just wants to remember...
1. What Am I?

Somewhere deep within Hueco Mundo, a certain hollow was lurking around. She had physical aspects of a panda bear with huge, bulky legs and paws. She walked on all four limbs. Her mask featured large protruding teeth and panda ears, as well as gray circular marks around her eyes. The hole that other hollows often sported on their chests or abdomens was strangely enough located on her tongue.

She wasn't like the others though. She didn't feel desire to kill and devour human souls, she simply fed off of the reishi-thick air. Her mind and thought processes were far more advanced than the other monsters, and she often wondered why she existed. She wondered why she was so different from the rest of the hollows. She didn't know why they acted to beastly. Didn't they all used to be human themselves? She just didn't feel like this was where she belonged. But she looked like them, so why was she so different?

She vaguely remembered being human. But she didn't remember how she became a hollow, or how she appeared in Hueco Mundo. She didn't remember her name either, but she really wanted to. Other hollows often attacked her but she was able to fight them off, sometimes tearing of their limbs or appendages as a warning. She didn't like fighting though and felt sorry for injuring them like she did. But it was either that or hold back and get killed. So she chose the former.

Every day she would wander around Hueco Mundo and try to remember. But no matter how much time passed, she couldn't. She became sad. Then she almost wanted to die. Maybe if she did, she could pass on somewhere and live a life with purpose.

She traveled to the world of the living once to try and remember. She tried communicating with the souls there, but they were all afraid of her because of what she was. So she went back to Hueco Mundo to continue her meaningless life.

As she was walking among the ivory sand, she saw another hollow sitting on a rock in the distance. By the look of its body, she guessed it was male. He was almost twice as tall as she was, and had crescent-shaped horns on the sides of his head. One horn was longer than the other. He had six arms and hands that were shaped like giant scythes. His hole was where his left eye should have been. She felt that his spiritual pressure was far greater than her own, and yet, she didn't fear him. He looked down at the ground, appearing defeated. She felt sorry for him and wondered why he looked so…despaired. She wasn't sure if she should approach him though. No other hollows she came across before had been any sort of friendly. But she wanted to. A large part of her wanted to comfort him since she didn't like seeing other beings in pain. Just then, he noticed her and his eye shot toward where she was standing. It startled her and she began to feel a little nervous. Luckily, he didn't charge at her. He just sat, and stared. She stared too. They stayed like that for a moment. But before she could do anything else, he got up and Sonidoed away. While she was glad that he didn't attack her, she was also disappointed that he went away. There was something about him that drew her to him, she just couldn't describe what. She hoped in her mind she would see him again…but she didn't know why…

Suddenly she noticed a small hollow being ganged up on by three larger ones. It cried for help. It was in trouble. Then she felt something she hadn't before…desire. Desire to help, protect, and defend. She sped over to the group of other hollows and lashed at the three offenders. She bellowed out a roar and reared up on her back legs. She took on all three of them by herself. There was a lashing out and gnashing of teeth. She bit, clawed, and slammed them into the ground as they tried to get a hold of her. She was wounded quite a bit, but managed to fend them off. They ran away, all of them limping and moaning in pain. She didn't pursue them because she didn't want to kill them. As long as they learned not to challenge her again, it would be alright.

As she looked back at the small hollow that was being attacked, it was trembling. It was a little monkey-like hollow. She attempted to approach it but it scampered away, fearing that she too would try to devour it. She sighed, and continued on her way.

But as soon as she began walking, she stopped. She felt something inside of her telling her to pull off her mask. Maybe if she got rid of the thing that made her a hollow, she could become human again. Then nothing would fear her anymore. Maybe she would remember her name then. She never thought of removing her mask before, let alone tried it. She stood on her back legs and gripped the sides of her mask with both front paws. She pulled with all her strength. The amount of pain it caused her was tremendous, but she didn't want to give up. She clawed at it and kept tugging on it. She screamed in agony as she finally felt it release her head. She fell on the ground, panting and bleeding. Then all of a sudden her body started to change. Her front legs shrank a bit and turned into arms. Fingers protruded from paw-like sleeves where claws used to be. Her mask now revealed her human face. Two panda ears rested on her head of long brown hair with teeth sticking out of the bottom of them. Glasses rested upon her face as well. She became more human-like.

She stood up, amazed at her transformation. She felt her face with her hands then ran on her two legs. She smiled as she started to remember her name.

"I…

…an…

…is…?"

She said quietly.

"Ianis? Is that my name?"

She jumped around with glee. Maybe she did have a purpose after all: to protect others.

Maybe if she kept doing it, she would remember more.

Then she noticed that she had a sword now. It was resting on her back in a sheath. She grabbed the hilt and held it, admiring its beauty. It had a lavender covering on its hilt, and three strings of shimmering beads dangled from the end of it. She swung it a few times, then sheathed it again.

"Just like using claws." She said to herself.

Now she spent her days searching for weak hollows that were unable to defend themselves that were mercilessly attacked by others. When she came upon such a situation, she saved them. She was almost always wounded from her fights with near equally strong hollows, but she was able to heal quickly.

This went on for a few years, until one day she was making her usual rounds through Hueco Mundo, when a human man approached her. He had brown hair that was slicked back and he wore snow-white garments that were trimmed in black. His spiritual pressure was incredible, and she fell to her knees in terror as her pupils shrunk.

What was he going to do to her? Where did he come from? What was a being like his doing in Hueco Mundo?

"Interesting…After searching for so long I thought I had found them all. But it appears I have missed one." He said.

What was he talking about? Was he going to kill her?

The man chuckled and spoke again. "You don't have to be afraid of me. Although I don't blame you…" he grinned at her. "Rise, and tell me your name."

She didn't want to suffer any consequences lest she refused, so she did as he said.

"My name is…Ianis…" she said softly.

"Ianis, do you wish to become stronger?" he asked.

She thought for a moment. If she was stronger, then she could defend those in need better than before. Maybe she could even protect human souls in the world of the living too.

"Yes…" she answered meekly.

"Excellent. All you have to do is follow me and join my army. Then I can make you stronger. What do you say, Ianis?"

His army? Were there other Hollows like her that changed? Did they think and act like she did? She was excited to find out, despite her fear of this man. So she agreed.

"Great, then come along."

She followed him until they reached a huge building-like structure.

"This is Las Noches, it's where you'll be staying from now on." He explained. "If you want to enjoy the safety of this place and become stronger, then you must obey me. If you refuse…well…let's just say you won't be doing it again. Ever. Along with anything else. Do you understand what I'm telling you?" he asked.

She understood him perfectly. She didn't want to die yet. She was curious about what was inside. So she replied "Yes…"

"Good, you may refer to me as Lord Aizen." He said as they entered the structure.

She followed behind him, scared and excited.


	2. New Comrades?

When they entered the structure the surroundings changed drastically. Instead of the normal ebony-black sky of Las Noches the sky in here was a light blue; it was similar to the world of the living and Ianis liked that. Her eyes widened with wonder as she observed her new environment. There was another building inside of this one and many pillars decorated its exterior. That was where Ianis and Aizen were headed.

"This is where you will be staying, with the rest of the Arrancars." He told her without looking back.

"A-arrancar?" Ianis asked, confused.

"Yes, that is what you have become by removing your own mask. You're advanced now. You're not like the other hollows anymore. You've gained the powers of a Soul Reaper Ianis. Do you know what Soul Reapers are?" he asked.

She thought for a moment. "No…" she answered shyly.

"Hm. It doesn't really matter anyway. All you need to know is that you're strong and you work for me now." He stated.

As they continued walking, they entered the secondary building. As they came upon the entrance, they were greeted by a man with silver hair.

"Hello, Lord Aizen. What's this you've brought with you? You've found another stray Arrancar? How interesting." He said while gazing upon Ianis. His spiritual pressure wasn't was high as Aizen's, but it was still pretty crazy. Was everyone here immensely powerful? More importantly, were they going to help her become that strong? Ianis was still somewhat frightened, so she looked nervously down at the ground as the other man looked at her.

"Yes, Gin. It appears that even after all this time yet another has developed. I feel she may be capable of becoming far stronger than she is."

"Are you sure? She seems so timid and shy. She may be unfit to be a warrior. The others may tear her apart." Gin said with a grin.

What? Would the other 'Arrancars' like her really just tear her apart? Were they just as aggressive as normal hollows anyway?

"Ah, but you have not witnessed her fight yet. I have seen her abilities. She seems to be motivated by protecting creatures in need. We'll have to find a way to modify that to have her perform as needed though." Aizen replied.

"I see. Well hopefully she survives meeting the rest. She's the most well-behaved I've seen so far. No source of anger in her whatsoever, that's impressive." Gin commented.

"Call the Espada. I want to introduce Ianis to her superiors."

"Very well Lord Aizen."

With that, Gin disappeared. "That was Ichimaru. It'd do you well to listen to him also." Aizen told her.

"Okay…" she mumbled. She still had mixed emotions about her current situation. On one hand, she was grateful that he was going to help her become stronger and she was still excited to see these other Arrancars, despite Gin's previous statements. But…would they really harm her after their supposed leader just brought her here? She decided to voice these thoughts.

"L-Lord Aizen…" she began.

"Yes?"

"Will the other Arrancars…will they hurt me?" she finallay asked.

He chuckled. "I suppose only if you give them a reason to." He answered.

She guessed that made sense. They came into a room where Aizen handed her a bundle of white cloth.

"Here. You need to look presentable to the others. Put this on." He said as he gave them to her.

She unfolded the garments and put them on. They were mostly white and trimmed with black, just like his. When she finished getting dressed, she admired her new appearance. She now wore a white top with ruffles at the end and big, poofy sleeves. She also had a flowing white skirt that was a bit shorter in the front than it was in the back. On her legs were black tights with white sandals that went all the way up her calves.

"Very good. Now, the Espadas are waiting to see you." He told her.

"Thank you Lord Aizen…" she said as her voice trailed off.

He led her down a large corridor into a rather large room. At the center was a long table with ten Arrancars seated around it. She guessed they were the Espadas. They all appeared very intimidating. But nonetheless, she hoped she could make friends with at least some of them…

"So, what's this about Lord Aizen?" spoke a man with pink hair and glasses. Ianis looked at him. She had glasses too…maybe they could get along together? He seemed calm…

"I want you all to know about a new Arrancar joining us. Her name is Ianis. I found her some time ago and have been observing her movements. She is a capable fighter and may even become Fracciones material with the proper training." He answered.

"That's it? Are you friggin' kidding me? Why the crap would I care?" outburst an angry guy with blue hair and half a mask covering his jaw. Ianis should probably stay away from him…

"Grimmjow, I tire of your insolence. You will cease the unnecessary commentary or else." Aizen threatened him. He grumbled and crossed his arms.

"As I was saying, I just wanted you all to be aware that she is here and not a threat. So there is no need to harm or do away with her. She is here for the same reasons that you all are and is helping us to achieve our goals. That is all."

At his dismissal, they all arose and began to walk away. Ianis' attention was drawn to the super tall one with a large round hood and long black hair. He wore an eyepatch. She wondered why… maybe she could ask him? She was compelled to follow him and find out. Aizen laid a hand on her shoulder to bring her attention back to him. When she looked at Aizen, he spoke.

"Well, I believe that is all for now. You can find yourself a room to stay in and perhaps spar with the others if you so wish. I will have some orders for you at a later time." He instructed.

Ianis happily nodded her head and carefully walked off in the direction that the tall guy went. She wanted to find him, but at the same time she didn't want to run into any of the scary looking guys she just saw at the table. She walked with her eyelids starting to droop. It had been a long day. She would be sure to find one of the rooms Aizen was talking about and take a long nap after she caught up to the guy with the eyepatch. Eventually she saw him outside on the roof of the building, looking out into the distance. He held a huge weapon with two moon-shaped blades attached to each other at the ends on a long rod with a chain.

' _Woah, he must be super strong to wield a thing like that…my sword is so tiny compared to his…'_ Ianis thought to herself. She cautiously approached him, holding her large panda-like arms to her chest.

His head almost immediately snapped in her direction. He grimaced. "What are you doing here?" he demanded.

That wasn't the kind of response she was hoping for. She would try to make the best of it though. "My name is…Ianis…" she shyly began.

"I know that. Aizen just said so." He replied. He seemed annoyed.

Great. Now she seemed like an idiot. She never really had made any friends before…this was going to be difficult.

"Oh…uh…sorry then…May I have your name so I know what to call you? Because you're one of my superiors and all…" she continued nervously.

"It's Nnoitra Gilga." He answered without interest.

"Oh, okay. It's nice to meet you Nnoitra-san." She said with a smile.

He bared his teeth a bit in agitation. "That's Nnoitra-sama to you, woman." He snapped.

She backed away a little, intimidated by his attitude. "I-I'm so sorry Nnoitra-sama…" she apologized.

He turned his body toward her before continuing. "Hmph. I don't know why you followed me, but you're weak. Therefore, I have no interest in you. So beat it before I lose my patience and kill you."

Her pupils shrank in fear as sweat began to collect on her forehead. Not wanting any trouble, she turned and ran away. Eventually she stopped when she thought she was far enough away from him.

"Geez, what's his problem?" she said to herself. "I just wanted to ask him one question…"

Disappointed by her failed attempt at socializing, Ianis frowned and looked at the floor. "What should I do now…?" she asked the air.

"Ah, there you are sweetheart." She soft heard a voice say. She looked up to find the man with pink hair and glasses who spoke first at the table earlier.

"Oh…um…hi…" she didn't know his name.

"It's Szayel Apporo Grantz, my dear. A pleasure to meet you." He held out his hand to her.

Ianis grinned at his friendly gesture and shook his hand. Finally, someone was being nice to her. That was good.

"Nice to meet you too Szayel-sama…" she said.

"My, so polite. You really are the most well-behaved Arrancar around here." He told her.

"Thank you… I wish the others were as nice as you…I still don't know much about how things are around here." She admitted.

Szayel gave her a warm smile. "Well, why don't you come along to my lab and I can explain everything to you. It's the least I can do for a new recruit as kind as yourself."

"Really? You don't mind?"

"Not at all, just follow me."

Ianis followed Szayel to his lab. Maybe things would get better after all…


	3. Can You Help Me?

As Ianis trailed behind Szayel, they conversed with each other.

"So why are a lot of the others so scary?" Ianis asked the pink-haired espada.

"Well, unfortunately many of them are short-tempered and don't care at all to make friends." He answered.

Ianis frowned.

"That's sad…maybe I can help them in some way? I don't like seeing others unhappy…" she said.

"That would be quite brave of you, Ianis. But I think it's best if you avoided the violent ones. Not even someone as sweet as you could change their demeanor." He responded.

They arrived at some rather large doors when Szayel said "Here we are." And opened them. There was an insane amount of technology inside a huge room. Beakers, test tubes, papers, and many unrecognizable things littered the many tables inside.

"Woah…this is intense." Ianis said as she gazed around the lab.

Szayel chuckled. "Well, this is just necessary for what I do." He told her.

They entered and Szayel sat down on a purple couch near the center of the lab.

"Have a seat, my dear." He told her as he gestured beside him.

Ianis blushed. She wondered why he was using such terms of endearment with her even though they had just formally met. But she nodded and sat next to him anyways.

"So, what would you care to know?" He asked as he rested his head on his left hand.

Ianis thought. "I guess everything…Lord Aizen didn't tell me much." She answered honestly.

"Alright, I'll start at the beginning then. You are what you are because you removed your hollow mask. That's how all of us became arrancars in the first place…."

Ianis listened intently to all of his explanations. She learned that Aizen himself had granted The Espadas their powers and abilities and that not all the ranks were always held by the same people. She learned a bit about each Espada and what they were like, as well as all the different ranks of arrancars and what fracciones were. He told her about Aizen, Gin, and Tosen. He explained to her what soul reapers were and about the three worlds. They had a lengthy in-depth discussion about several topics. Before they knew it, a couple of hours had passed by. When they finished talking, Ianis had a specific thing she wanted to know more about. Well, technically it was a person.

"Szayel?"

"Yes?"

"Can you tell me more about Nnoitra-sama?" she asked.

He grinned. "Interesting that you would ask that. He and I go far back even when before I became an Espada."

"You do?" she was really curious now.

"Well, we merely worked together to test a product of mine. He doesn't really like making new relationships with anyone. The only individual he interacts with on a daily basis is his one Fraccion, Tesla."

"Oh…I see…" she looked down as she spoke quietly.

"Why so curious about him, Ianis?" Szayel asked.

"I just… feel drawn to him for some reason…I want to know why he has that look in his eye…If there's any way I could help him…" she answered.

"Aren't you just a saint? Most arrancars only care about themselves, yet here you are caring about the wellbeing of others. I can say that he is rather stubborn and hard-headed most times, but I do agree that there is something that always seems to be bothering him. He covers it up by being violent and scaring anyone off who might point it out." He told her.

"Do you know…what he considers to be the purpose of why he fights?"

Szayel sighed. "I have heard him say before that he constantly looks for strong opponents so that he can die in battle. But that's the extent of my knowledge about him."

Ianis felt terrible after hearing that. "I wonder what's causing him so much pain that he wants to die…that's awful." She said sorrowfully.

"I suppose none of us Arrancars don't exactly live a very happy existence. But he does seem rather worse." Szayel admitted.

Ianis put her hand to her chin in thought.

"Since talking to him didn't work, maybe I should try using his 'language.'" She said after a few minutes.

Szayel looked puzzled. "What do you mean by 'his language?'"

"I mean fighting. If I were strong enough to spar with him, then maybe he would open up to me a little more." She explained.

He gave her a look of concern. "Ianis, he's number Five. Even I, a fellow Espada don't come close to his monstrous strength. How do you propose to get strong enough to fight him?"

"I don't have to beat him or anything…just get good enough to not die if he decides to fight me is all…" she looked over at him with a bright smile. "Do you think you could train me, Szayel-sama?" she asked.

A sweat drop ran down his head at the unexpected request.

"I'm not the type to fight with brute force like he is, but I suppose I could teach you a few things…" he answered, scratching his head.

"That's great! Thank you so much!" she exclaimed while closing her eyes.

"No problem."

"But before we start, I need to find a room to stay in. I'm pretty sleepy after today…" she said before yawning. She got up off the couch to leave, when Szayel stopped her.

"Wait, Ianis. I just remembered. I didn't even offer you any tea, how terribly rude of me. Would you like some?"

"Sure, that would be nice." She said with a smile.

"Good, stay here and I'll go get it." He said before hurrying off.

Ianis wondered why he seemed in such a hurry to get it. It was just tea, there was no rush or anything. While she waited for him to return, she laid on the couch with her hands behind her head. She pictured Nnoitra's serious face. She thought about all the things Szayel said about him. _'Do you really want to die Nnoitra-sama? I don't even know you, and yet…I want to help you. That's my purpose after all…to help and defend others. Will I be able to get through to you?'_ Her thoughts were cut short by the re-appearance of Szayel holding two cups.

"Here you are, Ianis." He said as he handed her one. Ianis sat up and took the cup from him.

"Thank you for being so hospitable, Szayel-sama. I'm really glad I could get along with someone. I wouldn't want to be by myself in a confusing time like this…I'm really grateful for what you've taught me so far." She gave him a smile.

"You're quite welcome. I'll help you accomplish what you set out to do. Someone has to look out for a sweet thing like you after all." He smiled back.

The day made a complete turn-around. She wasn't as scared anymore now that she had Szayel helping her along the way. His immense knowledge helped her understand things better as well. She took a sip of the warm tea. It was nice and sweet. It had a very distinctive flavor that she had never tasted before.

"What kind of tea is this, Szayel-sama? It's very good." She said.

"Oh, I made it myself. It's a special recipe." He replied.

She eagerly drank the tea until it was gone. Her tongue darted out to lick her lips in satisfaction. Suddenly, she began to feel drowsy. Her eyelids became heavy.

"W-what…?" she said quietly.

Her breathing slowed down. She collapsed on the couch, her head fell on its arm.

And the last thing she saw was Szayel's grin as he approached her.

Then she blacked out.


	4. Why have You done this?

Ianis winced at the bright lights that were penetrating her eyelids. As she slowly began to regain consciousness she realized that she was strapped down to a cold, metal table. Someone had removed her jacket, exposing her bare arms to the icy steel. Stuck in them were several IVs that were hooked up to numerous bags of mysterious liquid. She attempted to look down as much as she could, for cords were attached to and slightly restrained her head, and saw that her shoes were gone as well.

"W-where am I?" Ianis said to the air.

She had a bit of trouble recalling what had happened before this point, but eventually she realized after looking around at the huge machinery full of switches and blinking lights which surrounded her that she was last talking to Szayel.

"Szayel-sama? Where did you go?"

Her heart began to race as no one responded to her. That all too-familiar feeling of having a million questions came flooding through her mind. Why was she here? Who put her here? Did they do something to her? Was she about to die? The more she thought about it, the more panicked she became. Then, she heard something. The sound started out faintly, but grew in volume. They were footsteps. And they were getting closer to her. Ianis was afraid. So afraid that she was trembling. She could just make out a silhouette of the being that was approaching her. Her anxiety skyrocketed as the figure stepped into view. It was a very strange looking arrancar, He was extremely round and had a small, ugly head. When it noticed that she was staring right at him, he panicked and ran away, yelling

"Master! Master! She's awake! She's awake!"

He must have been a fraccion. So, who was his master? Was it one of the "violent ones" that Szayel had warned her about? Then again, how could anyone could have taken her when she was right by him the whole time? Ianis' thoughts were cut short as she heard footsteps again. She assumed that this was the "master" approaching her this time. Now she could see who did this to her. Anger rose up within her as she prepared to try and break out of her bondage and fight.

"Ah, ah, ahh~ you mustn't struggle my dear, you'll only hurt yourself."

Ianis' eyes widened as Szayel stepped into the light, wagging a finger. She was shocked. She didn't know what to say.

"S-Szayel? W-what…what's going on? Why am I all strapped down like this?"

He grinned as he answered her. "Why, it was to keep you from falling off the table while you were asleep, of course. And to keep you from doing anything rash when you woke up startled."

"B-but…I don't understand, did…did you do all of this?"

The espada chuckled. "My goodness, Ianis. You're so naïve that it's precious. Yes, I did 'all of this.'"

Suddenly she remembered passing out and seeing his wide grin. She felt betrayed. The happiness of finding someone kind and helpful had fled. Finally, she spoke again.

"Why Szayel-sama? I thought you cared about me…" her voice quivered.

"Oh darling, please don't accuse me of such horrid things, it hurts my feelings. Of course I care about you, that's why I made sure to use the strongest anesthetics to prevent you from feeling any pain during my experiments. I also made sure that any side effects from the drugs would be negated, seeing as I wouldn't want anything to happed to that pretty face of yours~" he gently rubbed her cheek as he spoke.

She ignored his 'affection.'

"What do you plan to do to me?" she said with a serious tone as she furrowed her brow.

Szayel seemed taken aback at her sudden change of attitude as he flinched and moved his hand away.

"My goodness, Ianis. Relax, most of what I needed to do is already finished. I just need to run a few more tests and you'll be free to go."

She wasn't satisfied with a vague answer like that.

"What kind of tests?" she demanded.

Szayel clearly didn't like the tone she was using with him. He grabbed the top edge of the table she was laying on and put his face right in hers. The sudden action made Ianis jump. In a low, threatening voice he told her

"I'm analyzing you, Ianis. Soon I will know absolutely everything about you and your abilities. And if you even think of trying to escape, I will make the procedure much, MUCH more painful. Is that what you want?"

She never thought this man with pink hair who had previously been so calm and polite could act so menacing. She began to sweat and was too afraid to speak. So she only shook her head slowly. After she did so Szayel backed off and smiled at her like nothing had happened.

"Good girl, now just be patient and I'll have you out of that uncomfortable table in no time. I'm only doing this because as I recall, you asked for my assistance. And this is my way of helping you."

He slowly walked away from her with a shrug and sat down at what appeared to be the main machine. After about an hour of carefully observing his every move, Ianis sighed heavily. Then Szayel approached her once more.

"Why the long face, my dear? You're all finished up now. Unfortunately, in order to properly remove all this equipment from your body without feeling immense pain, I'll have to put you to sleep again."

Ianis glared at him.

"How can I trust that you won't do more to me than what you've said?" she questioned sternly.

He only chuckled.

"Because, Ianis. I'm the Octavo Espada. And if I wanted you dead or horribly disfigured, I would have accomplished that by now, don't you think so? Now do me a favor and go to sleep."

As he finished speaking, he turned a knob on one of the IVs. Ianis struggled to stay awake as much as she could, but her willpower was no match for the strength of Szayel's sedatives. Her vision faded once more as she

Fell….

Out…

Of…

Consciouness…..

…

Ianis woke again with her arms covered in bandages. But this time, she was in a warm, soft bed instead of a cold, hard table. She sat up but cringed and held her head as pain flooded her brain.

"Gah! Why…why does my head hurt so much?" she wondered aloud as she grimaced.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her back, rubbing her in a comforting manner. Then she heard his voice.

"Oh, dear. I was afraid that might happen. I brought some pills for you to take that will stop that pain."

She looked up at a concerned Szayel. She raised a brow in confusion. Was this really the same person that just threatened her not long ago? Maybe he had an identical twin? Szayel noticed her curious expression and asked

"What's the matter? You seemed puzzled about something."

Ianis was kind of afraid of him at this point. Doubtful that he had a twin and scared of incurring his scary side again, she answered

"No…it's nothing…" she winced again at the pain.

Szayel held out his hand which contained three small pink pills.

"Here, take these. They'll help with that awful headache you must have. I have some water for you too."

Ianis skeptically took the pills from his hand, then the glass of water that he gave her. She didn't know whether or not to trust him, but he did make a good point about if he wanted to kill her he would have by now. And she just wanted this terrible migraine to go away. So she risked it and swallowed them with the water. In a matter of minutes, the pain stopped. They worked amazingly quick.

"There, feel better now?" Szayel asked.

"yes…thank you…" she said quietly.

"Oh come now, you mustn't be afraid of me Ianis. I'm going to help you get stronger so you can get closer to Nnoitra. Isn't that what you wanted?"

She gathered up the courage to look him in his amber eyes.

"Yes, but why would you do all this Szayel-sama?"

"I already explained myself. I did it in order to analyze you so I can be of better assistance."

His obliviousness to her concerns was baffling. Wasn't he supposed to be a genius or something?

"I know that, but why were you acting all creepy? Why did you put me to sleep like that all of a sudden? You could have just told me first if you were helping me!"

Szayel laughed.

"You sure are animated for someone who just woke up from anesthesia. I didn't want you to be scared about anything, so in order to quell any worries you may have had I just did it without telling you first. And it saved me the time of explaining every painstaking detail to you. As for being stern, I only wanted to get you to comply as quickly as possible. I would never really hurt you Ianis."

Ianis grasped her brow and shut her eyes in frustration as she let out a sigh.

"What? Head hurting again? I can get you some more pills-"

As went to leave, Ianis grabbed his wrist to stop him and said

"No, Szayel. My head is fine. What's not fine is you drugging me whenever you feel like just because you're too lazy to explain things."

"Ouch, a little harsh don't you think? Fine. Since it bothers you oh so much I'll tell you when I want to do more experiments on you alright?"

She let go of his wrist and crossed her arms.

"Szayel-sama…I really don't want to be turned into some science experiment."

He put his hands on his hips.

"But what if it's all to help you? Look, I don't do this just for anyone you know."

"And I appreciate your help. But please don't do anything drastic, okay?"

"Me? Drastic? How absurd."

Ianis really couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not.

"Nothing weird will happen to me right? I'm not going to sprout any extra limbs or anything?" she asked him.

"Of course not. I already told you that all the side effects have been negated."

She stood up from the bed and stretched herself out.

"Where's my Zanpakuto?" she asked.

"It's leaning up against the bed." He stated.

She grabbed it and continued

"So what now? If this is your way of 'helping' me then what's next?"

Ianis followed him into another room as they talked.

"Well, now since I know all about you and what you're capable of, we spar and test your limits. After that I'll see what I can do to help you stretch those limits. We'll also see about your sword release and how well you're able to control your resurreccion."

Eventually they came into a huge, spacious room.

"And this is where I'll be training you." He announced.

She was glad he just got straight to the point this time. But there was still one more question to be asked.

"So, Szayel-sama. Why are you helping me? What gain does this bring you?" she asked bluntly.

"Why, isn't it better to have friends than enemies? I also want to make sure that none of the other espadas crush you as they are well capable of doing so."

She was still the tiniest bit paranoid after this 'little stunt' he just pulled. And who could blame her? Still…she needed help if she wanted to get to where she wanted to be with Nnoitra. Szayel had also been treating her quite well besides the whole experiment thing. So what does she have to lose?

"Alright. Let's get this started Szayel-sama. I'm ready."

"I appreciate your enthusiasm, Ianis. But I'm the one who will be carrying out the orders…"

Szayel un-sheathed his sword and said

"…Now draw your blade."

He barely gave her any reaction time as he charged at her and swung. She managed to pull out her Zanpakuto fast enough to deflect it. But she could immediately tell that this wasn't going to be easy.


	5. What's that Look in His Eye?

It had been several weeks since Ianis joined Aizen's ranks now. Her training with Szayel had been going quite well so far, or so he had said. Despite his claims of great progress, Ianis still felt like she wasn't going to get through this quick enough. She was just so impatient about it. She wanted to make a breakthrough with Nnoitra as soon as possible, even if it was just a small one. Nnoitra had previously threatened her but she continued to follow him around, from a distance of course, and she made sure to hide her spiritual pressure like Szayel had taught her.

She especially liked to watch him train, which is what she was doing this particular moment. Sometimes he sparred with Tesla, other times he was alone. Ianis studied his movements closely and watched his tall, lean but muscular form control his huge weapon with ease. She admired his strength, and she really wanted to tell him that. But she felt that she wasn't ready to approach him a second time just yet. Ianis sighed quietly and held her head up with one hand in contemplation.

" _What's it going to take to get through to you Nnoitra-sama? It's like your heart is hardened…"_

Suddenly, she noticed that his gaze shifted to where she was watching him several hundred feet away. Even from that distance she could tell that they made eye contact. For a split second, Ianis could have sworn that he had a soft look in his eye, but it quickly turned cold and she felt his glare pierce right through her. Not wanting a confrontation with him just yet, she Sonidoed away. Her heart was pounding and she broke out in a sweat in fear that he might pursue her. Luckily she didn't see any signs of him or sense his spiritual pressure at all. With a quick sigh of relief, Ianis quickly rushed back to Szayel's palace.

She collapsed when she made it through the front entrance. Szayel was nearby and noticed that she was sitting on the ground and breathing heavily.

"My goodness Ianis, what's got you so worked up?"

"I-I had to get away from-Nnoitra" she said in between gasps.

"What happened?"

Ianis finally caught her breath.

"I was watching him train again and he saw me…I thought he was going to chase me. I probably would have been a goner if he did…"

Szayel offered his hand to help her get up. She accepted it and stood to her feet.

"Ianis, I told you to be careful about that. He may not be as sensitive to others' presence as I am, but he's not completely ignorant."

She sighed.

"Yeah…I know. But I can't help but think that this process is taking too long…"

"Well, you're in luck." He smirked. "I have some items I've produced that can help enhance your combat performance."

"Really? How did you do that?" she asked. Szayel only laughed.

"Oh, honey, I make stuff like this all the time. It's what I do, remember? Now come along so that we can test them."

She followed him to a table with small vials full of substances that were different colors. He then began to explain.

"So, since the beginning of your training, you've definitely improved. You're surely Fraccion material at this point. But unfortunately you're still nowhere near Espadas yet. But these concoctions that I've whipped up can help you with that inconvenient power gap."

"Do I just drink it?" she asked, lifting one of the vials to observe that bright, translucent liquid.

"Precisely." He answered. "I wasn't quite able to combine all three abilities into a single mixture without there being major strain on the body and undesirable side effects, so each color represents a different attribute. The blue increases your speed, green strengthens your defensive abilities, and pink enhances your offense."

"Shouldn't I just use all three at once for the best result then?" Ianis asked.

"Not unless you want to be exhausted to the point of near death after the items wear off. They're not permanent. I suggest only using two at a time, and even that will leave you quite tired afterwards."

Ianis looked somewhat skeptical.

"So what's the time limit for these things?" she asked him after a bit.

"That's what we have to find out now. During the next three days, we'll test the effects of each item on you and see what happens." He concluded.

"Alright, so when do we start?" she asked eagerly.

"We could do so now if you so choose-

He cut off the last part of his sentence and gave her a concerned look. She was confused.

"W-what is it Szayel-sama?"

"It's Nnoitra. He's headed over here. It'd be best for you to hide somewhere and cloak your spiritual pressure. Quick."

Not wanting to waste any time, Ianis quickly did as she was told. A few seconds later, she heard Nnoitra barge into the place.

"Good day, Nnoitra. May I ask what brings you here in the middle of the afternoon?" she heard Szayel ask.

Nnoitra only sneered.

"You can cut the act, Szayel. You know I don't give a crap about formalities. I only came to ask ya about somethin'."

The serious tone in Nnoitra's voice gave Ianis goosebumps.

"And what might that be? Are you interested in helping me carry out another experiment?"

"Tch, as if. I ain't your friggin' lab partner. I want to know where that girl is."

Ianis stiffened at the mention of 'girl'.

"I'm afraid that's quite a vague question." Szayel said.

"You know who I'm talkin' about, the new one." He sounded irritated with Szayel's faked ignorance.

"Oh, you mean Ianis? She's a sweet girl. But I haven't the slightest idea where she might be. Why do you ask?"

Nnoitra growled.

"Don't play stupid with me, Szayel. I've seen you with her before. Now where is she?"

At this point Szayel abandoned the innocent approach. His tone became darker now as well.

"Nnoitra. I certainly do not appreciate your current attitude. Even if I did know where she was, why would you want to know? I was convinced you thought nothing of her."

Curiously, nothing was said for a few seconds. After a moment of silence, Nnoitra responded again, with a hint of fluster in his voice.

"She was just watchin' me…it was weird and I wanted to know why."

"Well I'll be sure to ask her when I see her next Nnoitra."

"Heh. Don't bother. I don't even care anymore."

Ianis heard footsteps, presumably Nnoitra's, before hearing Szayel's voice again.

"Very well. I'll see you later then."

"Whatever."

Then, he was gone. She waited a good while before coming back out though, just in case. Szayel came and got her when he thought it was safe. Her heart was racing.

" _That was weird…did he really want to talk to me? He seemed sort of embarrassed at one point…I wonder why…"_

"T-that was close…" she said.

"What do you mean? Even if he did manage to find you, I'd never allow him to have his way with you."

"I know…but I don't want to cause any trouble for anyone either…" her voice trailed off as she looked down.

"Aw, come on sweetheart. Don't look so sad. Let's get to work on those items, alright?"

Ianis looked up at him and nodded.

"Alright, then. Let day one of testing commence." He announced.

Ianis took another look at the vials.

"I guess I'll try speed first." She told him. Without hesitation, she downed the vile in one gulp. She made a face when she finished. "Ugh, it tastes weird." She said.

"Well I can't do _everything_ at the speed you're wanting things to happen, Ianis." Szayel complained.

"Heh, heh. It's fine."

"Now, come at me. Try to keep up." He said as he seemingly disappeared.

Ianis sprinted after him as fast as she could. As she was catching up to him though, he saw her and sped up, then ran out of his palace. For a moment she thought there was no difference from before because no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't catch up to him a second time. Just as she felt like she was losing stamina, something kicked into her system and gave her a burst of energy. She ran faster. And faster. And faster. She couldn't believe it! She finally caught up to Szayel again as he came to a sudden halt. Ianis didn't expect him to stop so suddenly, so she tried to stop as well. Unfortunately for her, as she attempted to skid to said stop, she tripped and tumbled several feet from her momentum.

"Ughhh…" she moaned as she laid on the ground. She heard Szayel snickering. "Hey! Don't laugh at me! That hurt…" she whined.

"My apologies, Ianis. But that was quite comical. You'll have to get that halt under control." He said as he helped her up. "Now, I'm going to Sonido to different locations in succession and I want you to follow me, just as before."

Ianis shook her head as she regained her composure.

"Okay, let's do it."

…

Ianis was able to keep up with Szayel for a few hours. However, eventually she started getting tired. Szayel noticed her slightly slower movements and stopped.

"I can tell that the effects of the serum are beginning to wear off. We best head back now. You did well today, Ianis."

"Are you sure we can't keep going? I want to get better…" she huffed.

"I know, but over-working your body isn't how you become stronger. You need proper rest."

Ianis pouted.

"All right…"

As they arrived back at Szayel's palace, Ianis felt even more winded than before. She leaned up against a wall for support.

"Man…you were right about stopping when we did…I'm exhausted."

"That's to be expected. And keep in mind, you've only used one. The exhaustion will double once you use two at a time. I suggest you return to your quarters, I'll analyze the data from today's tests and get back to you tomorrow. You definitely need to rest."

"Okay, I will." She answered. "Goodbye, Szayel-sama."

"Ta-ta."

Ianis slowly began making her way back to her living space. Szayel had made sure that it was fairly close to his palace, that way she wouldn't have to travel too far back and forth to see him. On her way there, she passed by some other lower-level arrancars and greeted them. They seemed surprised by her kindness and returned her friendly gesture before being on their way.

At last, Ianis made it to her room. It was nothing that special. But it was a good sized area with plenty of space, and more importantly, a comfortable bed. She dragged herself over to it, removed her jacket and fell onto it. She rolled over and gazed at the drawings she hung on her walls, since she didn't like the plainness of the room before. They were all different, some of landscapes of Las Noches, some of small hollows, a couple of self-portraits, and other things as well.

Ianis discovered that she liked to draw when Szayel had left her at a table one day to fetch something, and there happened to be a pen and some paper there. Out of boredom, she picked up the pen and started doodling. She sketched some of the weird-shaped bottles that were in his lab, her hand, and a few other random things. When he returned, he saw her drawings and complemented them. Ever since then when she wasn't sleeping or training, she drew.

She had a picture that she drew of Szayel at one point, but he loved it so much that she decided to let him have it. To her slight embarrassment, she also had a small sketch of Nnoitra's face.

As she looked at it now, her determination to grow stronger increased. No matter how exhausting this training may be, she was willing to go through it all if it meant helping someone. That split-second of softness in his eye that she was lucky to witness was stuck in her head. That gave her even more hope that there was a chance of helping him.

Her thoughts drifted away like clouds carried by the wind as her tired body led her to fall asleep.


End file.
